Ukraine and America: Smoke but no fire

By Lady Olga Maitland

22 April 2025

Ukraine: A hollow truce

A cryptic message from contacts in Ukraine suggests that Russia’s offer of an Easter truce was just that—an offer, and in word only. Vladimir Putin has expressed openness to direct talks, albeit limited to ‘no strikes on civilian targets’. The gesture changes little. The Kremlin continues its incremental advances on the battlefield while the West, particularly America, tiptoes around direct confrontation. For now, Moscow is content to kick the can down the road, buying time as it grinds forward.

Kyiv, meanwhile, is playing its own long game. A rare-minerals deal with the U.S. serves as both a stalling tactic and an effort to keep Donald Trump onside. But any such agreement still needs Ukraine’s parliamentary approval.  

America’s universities: Collateral damage

The chaos of American politics is not confined to foreign policy. Higher education, once a bastion of stability, is under pressure. The Trump administration’s cuts to federal funding for universities and research have rippled far beyond Harvard and Columbia. Even lesser-known state institutions are feeling the pinch.

A Midwestern professor (who requested anonymity) reports that a cybersecurity summer programme was defunded—ostensibly to “protect” minors—while athletics budgets remained untouched. More alarming is the erosion of medical-research grants. Foreign-born academics, anxious about their residency status, now tread carefully when discussing federally funded projects. The official line is deference—“Of course, we will accept whatever is decided”—but the subtext is fear. This is shortsighted: immigrant researchers have long been a pillar of American innovation.

Students, meanwhile, are disillusioned. Asked whether they will vote in the midterms, many shrug. “They’re cynical about making a difference,” laments one educator. Mobilising them will be an uphill battle.

The climate grows harsher still. At the same Midwestern university, 19 international students—mostly from the Middle East—had their visas abruptly revoked. Yet through it all, the MAGA faithful remain unmoved, dismissing the turmoil as “fake news.” For them, the chaos is either invisible or intentional.